Death
by silver-eyed
Summary: Past lives and conspiracies that transcend worlds collide as Wufei rediscovers that although one life may be over, he's still got this one to make everything right fantasy AU, shounei ai, Mature
1. Chapter 1

Death

Prologue

I don't own Gundam Wing.

A/N I just wanted to say that this fic has been sitting patiently in my laptop for the past year or so. I've only recently begun continuing this so don't expect updates too frequently. I've only got chapter 1 done but I do have an idea of where this is going. Sorry for those who don't like shounei ai, or boy/boy relationships. There won't be anything too obvious in this fic, no outright lemons or even limes. You could even take it for a really strong friendship. Anyway, onto the story! Hope you like and let me know what you think XD.

A single raven caws before flying up into the tree tops. As it lands among the thin, barren branches, more fly up to join it. The shrieking of the birds can be heard from bottom of the tree where a dark figure lies unmoving. When the figure, be it man or beast, continues its slumber, the ravens grow bolder, readying themselves to pick out the soft fleshy eyes and the slick warm intestines.

A few miles away from the scene of the ravens' feast laid the ruins of a once thriving city. Buildings still burned and others smoked. Bodies littered the roads were they had fallen when Death took their souls. Human corpses laid with those of other mythical origins. Elf, troll, dwarves, demons, whatever the origin, there had been no mercy on any.

This fallen city signaled the beginning of the end for the Archaic Era. What era was to come later would be what was known as the Empire, as two young men traveled to where gold, lust and danger awaited them.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Death

Chapter 1

I don't own Gundam Wing nor do I make any money off of this sadly.

A/N: I'm letting this one out early because I always feel bad when I only put up the prologue cuz it's so short. Anyway, enjoy!

The smell was the worst part; rotten meat and slimy fluids all slapped into each other to make one stinking batch of dead smellers; rodent sized monkey-like creatures that feasted on soft human flesh. Well, not tonight. We smelled them even before we had set foot into Pine Forest. The villagers did not even have to tell us what the problem was. Only a few years ago this forest was full of wild game and enough plants to supply the tiny village south of it. But now, demons and other dangerous creatures roamed the woods, preying on travelers and diminishing the supply of game and edible plants.

Thus, the reason we were here. We being myself, Wufei, and my partner, Trowa. We are hunters. And as our title suggests, we hunt creatures such as these smellers and others that disturb villages or travelers. Don't get me wrong, we hunt only for three reasons: gold, food or shelter if there is no gold, and revenge.

In this case, it's for the first reason. But smellers aren't the ones we're hunting. Demons run amok in Pine Forest and we're here to kill them. You see, something happened about half a score of years ago that disrupted the balance of our world. Some surge of power, energy, whatever you want to call it, surged through all of the lands and waters of our world. Because of that, certain weak areas of the walls of our world collapsed and thus tears as they are referred to were created which allowed other creatures into our world.

That's the gist of it. How it happened or why it happened, no one outside the King and his royal advisors knows and they have been very capable of keeping that secret from the rest of the world.

Enough of the history of why we're here. I can feel the auras of the demons getting closer and Trowa feels the same. From what I can sense, there's a pack of about six, not too bad. Though they're small and vicious, they will be dealt with swiftly.

We both move silently, mainly out of habit because they can smell us anyway, they've probably smelled us the moment we entered the forest. Demons have a way of marking a certain area as their own and anything that enters their area they will know right away. And the more powerful the demon, the larger the area and the more sensitive they are.

A noise from somewhere ahead of us causes us to pause. Without looking at each other, we both separate and go our own ways. Trowa will move out to watch for others while I head for the source of the noise to see what it is. Through the years of working together, we have tuned ourselves to how each other works. Trowa's strength is with his long bow and his arsenal of magic. I on the other hand prefer close range with my double sided sword, a rarity in most parts of our world, and my magic-fused techniques.

The sound occurs again but this time another sound follows. It sounded like a woman, much to my chagrin. I don't hate them, but they get on my last nerves with their silly moods. Watch, should this be a woman, she'll be sobbing and begging, all the things I despise.

No matter, we're here only for the demons and anything else that might've crawled out through the gate. Speaking of the gate, all we have to do is temporarily seal it so that nothing else can get out for a bit, giving the village mage enough time to put a stronger seal on it to prevent anymore breakthroughs.

Trowa and I don't deal with anything that involves higher magic. The last time we tried was…well, quite a while back, before we met up and started working together. I don't know what his experience was and he doesn't know mine; just the way we prefer it. We work well together in the way that we don't butt into each other's personal affairs.

I hear the sounds again. I'm closer now, and they're more distinct. Listening more intently it sounds like moaning. I have no desire to see what in the Void would have a demon moaning. But as it would be, I've never had much luck; and I'm about to see what all the noise is about.

"Hmm, yea…just like that," a husky voice whispered. An answering moan followed along with more sensuous stroking from a scar ridged hand connected to a reptilian body. There wasn't enough moonlight to see the true color of the reptilian demon but the woman was human enough in appearance although looks were usually deceiving when it came to any non-human creature.

It was obvious what they were doing and I hoped Trowa wasn't getting as great a view as I was. It was sickening to the stomach watching the female ride the demon. Whether they knew we were there or not did not really matter. We were waiting for the others to show up before we started anything.

I could feel at least one more nearby but the others had probably separated like Trowa and me. Well, no matter, it's easier that way, at least for us. We do better with fewer opponents and only ourselves to worry about.

And so I had three demons to deal with leaving Trowa with the other remaining three. I move away from the two and make my way to where I feel the third aura. This one is the one that we should worry about if we have to worry at all. Hunting has taught us that we can't underestimate anything from the smallest smeller to the scrawniest demon child.

I move around the copulating couple towards the third. The two don't even pay attention to me as I move around them. Moving silently a few more feet away from them, I sense the third demon approaching me. Just great, I need to keep them separated for now.

I ready my drawn sword as the demon approached.

It hissed at me when our eyes met. As soon as I could get a gist of what it looked like, I attacked. Thrusting my sword directly at it I watch as it slithers out of the way and swipes a clawed appendage at me. I adjust my foot and swing upwards, all ready anticipating its move and slash at its unprotected side.

Its cry of pain and fury is deafening but I press my advantage as I have now lost any surprise that I might have had. It also means that Trowa would have either lost his surprise as well, or it might have worked in his favor. No time to think about him as this demon charges me unthinkingly.

The moment it charged, it was over. A quick, hard swing decapitated its head and the appendage that rose to attempt to block my sword. The body fell to the ground and I turn to face the two that I had left for last.

To my surprise, I find them still at it and I scowl in disgust. They are finishing as I draw my right hand up ready to burn them alive with a fire spell. She laughs and kisses that thing wantonly as she drags her tongue out and looks right at me.

Her eyes stop me from starting the spell. The demon on top of her rolls off of her and stares at me with a smug look. I don't know why it would look at me that way; I have no desire to be in its place. It stands up and starts toward me, intending to kill me.

Two steps later it halts and starts gurgling and struggling as if it can no longer breathe. I watch as it falls down to its knees and continue to struggle. I see something coming out of its mouth; something black and slimy. It must've come from that woman.

She laughs, continuing to sit on the ground with her naked self displayed for me to see. Her laughter is haunting and ethereal at the same time. I know for sure now that she is no human.

"You have come at last," she finally speaks, "So you are the one that He waits for." She stands up and like a deer caught in a trap I am unable to move as she struts over to me. Around me she walks and like a lion eyeing its prey, she judges me.

I am so tense but my limbs refuse to obey my mind's frantic orders to move. She makes several circles around me before she stops in front of me and leans in closely. I can smell her; like roses, but underneath the smell of roses I can detect it. Very faintly I could smell the sweet stench of death, of an overripe fruit that rots from the inside out.

I realize what it is that has frozen me as fear finally makes itself known to me. I have an inclination of who she could be. There are stories of various gods and goddesses that appear in corporal form to those unlucky ones. There are several tales of the one who smells of flowers and ripe fruit.

And I happen to be one of the unlucky ones if my guess was right.

Before me stood Death and she laughed when she saw the knowledge and fear in my eyes. No one can stand up to Death and not be afraid.

"Let me see," she purred out, "Show me why He waits." Her eyes swallow me and all I see is black. The pain hits me and I hear screaming. It takes me a moment to realize that I'm the one screaming. It feels like a life time before the pain slowly starts to fade and I can breathe once more, no longer screaming.

I find myself on my knees gasping for air with Death no longer in sight. Vaguely I look around, unable to focus on anything in particular. I can still smell her; I can hear her laughter echo in my ears.

Finally I push myself up and settle back on my haunches, the world a fuzzy blur around me. She speaks once more and my mind deciphers the words that float around me.

"You have this life but if you fail, He will forever be mine."

I shake my head. Damn that woman. It's only fitting that Death should show itself to me in the form of something I despise.

Moments later Trowa steps forward from the undergrowth before me slowly. He looks at me questioningly. I stand up and take a deep breath and wonder how much I should tell him. No doubt he will not ask if I don't say anything, but we have come to the understanding that anything that will affect the other must be said sooner rather than later.

As of right now, I have no idea what the hell she was talking about so I keep it to myself. If he saw or heard anything, let him wonder for a bit and draw his own conclusions.

"Let's go," I say. He stares at me a moment longer before he nods slightly, letting me know that I have point. I don't argue at his small show of distrust. I would have done the same thing as well.

It doesn't take too much longer to place a temporary seal on the tear. The tear itself is small, barely a meter high and a foot across. The characteristic of a tear is an emanating foreign aura of wild magick that seeps from a tear in the space.

It's black and exactly what it sounds like; like someone took a large claw and ripped at the fabric of space.

The sealing done we head back to the village with the news. They can deal with the remaining smellers and other small creatures that had passed through the tear. As far as I was concerned, we were done. I wasn't going to admit that my encounter in the forest had affected me more than I thought it would.

The entire traveling time to Corranth all I could think about were her words. My mind raced and raved at who He could be. I didn't have any close relations as my family is dead. I am the last of my clan. That history is for another night though as I already have enough to deal with.

"Hey, did you hear that Merin had fallen?"

"Yeah, what happened there? All I heard was that no one survived."

"It's true. I heard that the early morning merchants came into town one morning to find the entire town demolished and everyone was dead!"

"Who did it?"

"I don't know, but it wasn't human. There weren't any tracks of an army or anything, nothing was taken. Some of the bodies were torn apart like an animal or demon got to it."

"It must be a demon. Nowadays with so many rips in the world, there's bound to be one that's strong enough to take down a town that size."

The talk in the tavern continued as more people joined in while others listened to the news of the fallen city. Merin was no small town. In fact, it was a rather large and diverse city full of ongoing trade and successful businesses. There was every kind of race there from elves to half demons to man. Trowa glanced at me, as we shared the same thoughts.

It passed between us without words that we would head there and start tracking whatever that thing was. Surely someone must be alive and be able to tell us what happened and what they saw. We continued to sip at our drinks as the man who seemed to know the most kept talking while others speculated.

It's been a week since we left Pine Forest. As of yet I still could not forget what happened. I still haven't told Trowa either and I plan to keep it that way still.

Our stay in Corranth is short. It's merely to fill up on food and supplies and find ourselves another lead for a job before we leave once more. This town is our most common stopping place as it's rather convient; we travel back and forth quite a bit and this city happens to fall more or less in the middle of our travels.

We head to bed for an early start tomorrow. Merin is in the south and about three hard days of ride away. We plan on getting there in two and a half; the quicker we get there, the better chances we have of finding tracks.


	3. Chapter 3

Death chapter 2

Same disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, I just use the characters to satisfy my own desires (That sounds wrong in so many ways) and there is no money involved I swear.

Enjoy!

The wind was bitter and cold; add that to the icy drizzle; I was in a foul mood. The oiled leather hood and cloak I wore did not want to stay over my head but instead keep flapping around and doing its best to annoy me. Trowa didn't seem to have any problems, damn bastard; then again, he had that crazy hair of his that I had yet to figure out how he did it.

Weather here in the south had me missing the warmer parts of the middle country where we had been not too long ago. Even the hell hole that Corranth was seemed better than here. Trowa appeared to sense my dark thoughts as he turned slightly and glanced at me with amusement.

I knew I had not made a sound but that man seemed to have a sixth sense about everything. I usually don't complain as it has saved our lives numerous times. But at a time like this I hate it as I can't hide very many things from him.

I return his stare with a scowl before I turn away and ignore him. I try to ignore the rain and the cold winds as well. Just as I was about to succeed, there is something up ahead that takes my attention. There is a spread of tents about five miles down the road.

There are no trees to provide shelter; the trees are a ways yet down the road and I wonder why these people had decided to pitch here.

Trowa and I approach cautiously, our eyes keen and observant on the people as we ride closer. Upon closer inspection it appears like they are merely merchants but looks can be deceiving. Our clothing clearly indicates us as swordsmen for hire and we approach as such.

A man, one of the four who had been watching us approach spoke out as we came within hearing range.

"You two, what business do you have going this way?" he asked gruffly. I didn't bother to speak as Trowa automatically answered.

"There's rumor that a demon wiped out Merin not too long ago. We were here to see for ourselves," he answered calmly back. The man seemed to weigh his words for a moment before he spoke again.

"Many have come this way with the same rumor. Many of those have indeed gone onto Merin which is beyond this forest. I can still hear their screams not even a day into the forest. You had best turn back," the man warned us. I wanted to scoff at him and tell him to keep his warnings to himself. I wanted to know why they were camped here anyway.

"Keep your cryptic talks to others. What's in that forest?" So much for not talking. The man glared at me and was about to retort to my rude demand when another man stepped out of the largest tent and spoke up.

"A demon. That's all we know. If you go any closer than this to the forest, you can feel its aura," he spoke slowly but loud enough to be heard over the wind and rain.

"Not all can feel auras," Trowa explained reasonably. The man just stared at Trowa and nodded.

"Come inside and I will tell you," he said cryptically. Despite my rude comment about them being cryptic it seemed that they were going to keep being cryptic anyway. I snorted but I was wary as I got off my horse. Trowa followed me and we handed the reins of our horses to the man who had first spoken. I gave him a hard glare, daring him to do anything with my horse. Trowa entered the tent but I stayed out. As much as I hated the cold rain it would be stupid to go in with him.

About ten minutes later as the rain picked up, Trowa came out of the tent.

"We're going to stay here for the night. We'll head out to the forest in the morning." That was all he said before he went to his horse and began taking out supplies. He pulled a pack off his horse and headed over to a tent closer to the road. It seemed that we were going to be sleeping in that tent for the night.

Later inside when we had settled down, I got down to business. I wanted to know what the hell they talked about.

"What's going on?"

"There's a demon involved. Whether it's in the forest or not is unknown. The demon's aura extends beyond the forest. It seems that this demon is strong enough that even those without gift can feel it. This one might be the one that leveled out Merin which is a ways beyond the forest still," he spoke quietly. His tone was grave. To anyone else he sounded like he always did but I could detect a sign of graveness to his voice.

"What are you thinking?" I ask just to hear him say it even though I have an idea of what it might be. He looks at me with his one visible eye, a dark green in the lamp light.

"This might be more than we want to get involved in." I study his eye and a memory flashes briefly in my mind of an incident involving higher magic and politics.

"_Wufei…I'll never have you…" she whispered, putting into that sentence all the emotions that she had been holding back the entire night since it started._

"_I love you anyway," she said as her eyes lost focus and the life faded out of her. It was the first time that he had heard her say it. Stubborn girl had been fighting their betrothal tooth and nail for the entire period of four months. A lump formed in my throat as I thought about what could have been. What I could have done to prevent this._

_There was no time to mourn as the others were waiting outside. My head had been clouded, full of flashes and scenes that I never lived in this lifetime. Now as I left her and walked out of the dilapidated shelter my mind was clear about what I needed to do. Little did I know what the hell I was getting myself into._

_Trowa stared at me and I knew by the look in his eyes that he understood what I needed to do. It was time to get this war over with and stand for justice._

Shrugging that particular memory off I think about what we've heard so far about what was going on here. There wasn't anyone paying us to look into this disaster. We would just be going into this for our own curiosity and need. Which could get us killed.

"I say let's check out the forest at least and the aura of the demon. It seems that this one is strong enough that if nothing is done now it will become a problem later that would involve us anyway," I reasoned. I wasn't seeking a kill just for the heck of it, but I didn't want to walk away from this and have to turn around and handle it later either.

Trowa nodded his agreement, " However, we might need a powerful mage if we want to stay alive, even for scouting." I agreed and showed him by nodding as well. We both had the same person in mind. It was someone that we had dealt with before, when we had first started working together; back to the war.

"I'll send him a message," Trowa said and he grabbed his pack and stepped out of the tent. I didn't know the relationship that he had with that mage and I didn't care. It was a good connection and had kept us alive many times. Thinking on it now, it would be in our best interest to have the blond mage with us even before we stepped in to the forest.

The mage didn't look like much, but when the time came for battle he held up more than his own ground. Who knew that soft blue eyes and golden hair could be the front for a calculating strategist? Looks were deceiving; I don't know why I keep reiterating this; one would think that I'd get it through my head and stop acting so surprised.

Despite his skill and power which made him a formidable mage, he had a soft heart.

"_Surrender and I will not kill you," the blond mage spoke, almost pleadingly at the wounded man before him. Barely standing but rebellious the man had charged but was quickly cut down by the curved blade that the mage wielded with deadly skill._

"_You could have lived, fool," he murmured softly, sadness showing in his eyes. I glared at him; his softness was going to cause problems sooner or later._

"_You're the fool. He's the enemy. You would never surrender to the enemy if it meant your life would be spared, would you?" I asked him. He stared at me in shock, thinking about my words before his gaze hardened and he nodded at me._

"_I suppose not," he agreed. After that, I no longer heard him plea for them to surrender._

I wonder if he's changed much since that last battle which was the last time I saw him. Last I heard he had returned to the deserts of his homeland with his people. I don't know if he's kept in touch with Trowa or not. My partner's really private and secretive; I don't know what he does in his spare time nor do I want to know.

Enough thinking for now. I have no business wondering about those two. I have my own thoughts and demons to occupy my time. Speaking of which, I still lie awake some nights pondering about Death's words. She-It must have seen something that it liked or else I would have been gurgling and twitching like that demon.

I settle down on the makeshift cot and close my eyes. I can still hear that laughter, I can smell the roses and rot that clung to her-it. I let out a frustrated sigh. Who is He? I close my eyes and I try to sleep, unaware that my dreams would try to answer my questions for me.

Quick note: I kind of edited chapter one (just a few words here and there, nothing significant so you don't have to go reread it) but if you haven't guessed who the mage is…then you need to either watch the anime or read more Gundam Wing fan fiction.

Anyway, there are pairings here and they are going to be boyxboy (the main ones anyway). Sorry to anyone who thought otherwise. They will be revealed as the story goes on. I'm writing this story as I go so I don't have anything ready beyond what I've posted. I already forgot what else I wanted to say to clarify things. Uh, well, I might remember later. Any questions, ask away!


	4. Chapter 4

Death chapter 3

I don't own Gundam Wing.

A/N This is a dream until the end.

!!

The cold ate at us like a disease. Two of our men had already succumbed to the bitter frost that lines everything here. We were not meant to be here in this frozen wasteland. The thought of our homeland with its lush mountains and green rivers just makes me even colder.

I want nothing more than to turn back and head home. No doubt so did all the other men who had accompanied me on this foolish journey. But the wise woman Zhong Wuyan had spoken and the Emperor had ordered a troupe of soldiers to carry out the task.

As the son of the Emperor's younger brother I stand second in line to inherit the throne. My cousin is in fine health. As a General in my own right I am content with what I have.

And here I am with my fifty men carrying out a task that will save our people. I don't believe for one moment that this is going to save anyone at all. I don't want to die here in this frigid land; I don't want my story to end here.

We are no closer to the end than when we first entered this land. The cloaked man who led us here is currently shivering among my men. I'll have his head if we don't get out of here soon. He appears as lost as we are. What a waste!

I grit my teeth and stand up. The snow has stopped falling and the winds have finally died down. It's time to move on. I make my way over to the shivering man and yank him up.

"Come now. The skies are clearing; surely you know where we are now?" I growled at him. He looked up at me with confusion in his eyes. It took a moment but they finally focus and see me. I take a deep breath as to not break his neck here and now. There's no point in a dead man I remind myself.

"Y-Yes," he stutters out. Shakily he stands up with my help and begins looking around. It's been over a week since we've been stuck in this snow storm of everlasting snow and bitter wind. The man had been mumbling and bumbling about a curse. I had told my men to ignore him.

"The curse is gone," he exclaims to himself. If I'm not careful I could start to believe that someone had cursed me with this task. I smack him in the shoulder, "Quit your foolish talk and lead us out of here."

We pack up and for another day we march through the snow. The wind is no longer so vicious but the sun that had been absent this entire week finally shows sheds its warmth on us.

That's when it happens. With the sun melting everything, it was no wonder the ice cracks and we fall through. Half my men lose their lives when they plunge into the icy river beneath the false ground that we were tracking on. The others and I land on an icy ledge. Panic threatens to overtake some of them and I shout an order for them to shut up.

"Get your rope out!" I order. I look at who is still with me and I choose Ling Piang, the smallest out of us.

"Ling, take Zhou's and Tsuchao's rope. Climb to the top of the ledge and find something to tie it to. We'll haul ourselves out that way," I explain calmly. The man nods and moves to take the rope from the other two. A couple of them move to help Ling as he prepares to start climbing.

With a little bit of luck, the man starts climbing. It's at the top though that he calls back down and tells me that there is nothing to tie the ropes to. I frown, there was nothing much else we could do except climb out individually ourselves. Set on that, I give out the order and they start climbing carefully as to not upset the icy walls into breaking.

I look over the edge where the river is briefly before I turn to the ledge, prepared to start climbing. As I wrap my hands with cloth, I hear it. It's faint at first but I turn back and listen again.

There it was. Someone was calling my name. I would have thought that it was one of my men who had survived somehow but they would never call me by my given name.

"Don't listen, General Chang!" the cloaked man warns me with a frightened look in his eyes. I look to him questioningly. He doesn't look toward the river but at the wall opposite of us.

"There are many creatures that will lure a person out and away by calling their name. If the person follows, they will become lost and die." His explanation made sense. But what didn't make sense was the fact that whatever creature here knew my name.

There it goes again. It was haunting yet so alluring as well. I wanted to go over to the edge and take a look, see if it's waiting for me just out of sight. I take a couple steps. I feel it, it's like there's someone there. The warmth taunts me and I take another step.

Suddenly I'm yanked backwards, away from it. My heart wrenches and I shout in anger. Who dares to keep me from it? My fist strikes out instinctively but I stop short at the face and the voice.

"General!" It's only Dao. I glance behind him and see the remainder of my men staring at me. It looks like they had been calling me for quite some time now. I look behind me and see that I'm mere inches away from the edge. The reality of my action hits me hard but I harden my eyes and nod at Dao, acknowledgement for saving my life.

As we climb out of there, the cloaked man points out that there is only a couple more days of walking. He points to a large mountain to up ahead, saying that we just need to head to the foot of it. There will be a path there that leads to the other side where there is no snow.

The news cheers us immensely but he ruins it by warning us of strange beast that prowl the area preying on such as ourselves who try to pass through. When night falls, it doesn't look like we're any closer but he assures me that it's merely an illusion. Once we pass a certain distance, the illusion will fade and we will be upon the mountain.

I don't like his talk of superstitions and strange creatures. Yet here outside of my element I hold my patience and let him talk. At least some of the things he said so far have been accurate.

We settle down for the night and I order five men to set up watch for the first shift. After delegating shifts out, we start unpacking sleeping rolls and blankets. The men pull out their supply of rice and they cook. We still have enough dried meat to last us until we get through this wasteland. Everyone packs for themselves so that in a case such as what happened earlier, we don't lose our food because one person had it.

The men insisted that I do not take watch. My earlier action had rightly scared them that I might just walk away and never look back. I called them foolish but gave in nonetheless. Even still, as I lay there looking at the stars, I feel sleep overpower me and my eyes close.

"Wufei…" I open my eyes slowly. "Wufei…" It calls again. That same haunting voice from earlier. There was some emotion in that voice that now that I had a moment to analyze it, it sounds so forlorn and lost. My heart aches and I want to reach out.

It calls again and I open my mouth to call back but couldn't as I did not know what name to call. It has so many names that I didn't know which one to call it by. So I settle for finding it instead. I find myself sitting up and thrusting my blankets aside. The cold doesn't bother me as I start walking toward it.

Five steps later I no longer knew what direction it was coming from. I look around, lost and upset that it was no longer calling me. With my heart hurting I call out the name that I last called it by. My cry is taken away by the wind and I try again but with the same results.

Hands grab me from nowhere and voices with no face call to me urgently.

"General! Wake up!" My eyes snap open and I see Ming crouching beside me. The others are awake and staring at me unsure as to what they should do. Their leader was being messed with and they didn't know what to do.

My chest hurts but it slowly fades as I forget why I was calling in the first place.

"How long have I've been sleeping?" I ask Ming. He studies me briefly before answering, "A few hours only, sir," he hesitates and then adds uncertainly, "You were saying something…strange, sir."

"What do you mean?" I don't really remember what I was dreaming about, except that I heard the voice again and I wanted to find it; called its name.

"I don't know, sir. It didn't sound like anything we know," replied Xu Yun. My men look frightened. This was not good. I turn to the cloaked man and demand to know what the hell is going on.

"I don't know for sure. I have heard stories that there are those who have caught the eye of some creature or deity and they are plagued by them until they surrender and go with them." I glare at him and his load of foolish talk. That was a rather convenient explanation. It also didn't help that some part of me was starting to believe all this talk about magic and things better left alone.

I drop the issue shortly after that and tell everyone to get some sleep. I knew we were going to need it for the rest of this damn journey.

!!

The sun was bright and the air was warm. It felt like heaven as we finally passed through the passage way from the other side. Here was a valley full of greens and blue skies. It was hard to think that such a rich place existed right on the other side of hell. Then again, what's love and hate but two sides of the same coin?

My men rejoice at the warmth and I let myself smile inwardly. I was glad to get out of that place. The last day there, yesterday, had been tense and draining. We could hear them, creatures of the unknown with dreadful howls. They stayed out of sight but their cries strained our ears and shook our courage. The entire time we could feel eyes on us.

But it was as if there was some blockade between them and us for they never did approach but rattled us with their howls instead.

The cloaked man walks ahead of us and starts running and waving his hand. There is a dense forest at the bottom of the valley. From the tree lining emerge men who had hidden in the foliage and branches.

I tense, I hadn't even seen them! My men's joy is cut short as I signal them to form up in case of any attack or threatening moves. The cloaked man finally removes his cloak and I see that his attire is the same as the men that had appeared from the trees.

Black pants with brown undershirts with white armor of some sort covering the chest area. Over each face was an animal mask with colored stripes. They carried weapons and blades on their backs. This was definitely something that neither my men nor I have ever seen before. Even at the edges of our land where the primitive races lived was anything close to this.

Our guide speaks to them in a foreign tongue. There is little talk from the one that he talks to except for one word and a nod.

"Come, they've been waiting," he calls back to us. The strange warriors move out in a loose circle and flank us. Wary, I lead my men toward our guide and the tense group moves on down toward the trees leading into the forest.

Inside the forest we are taken to a settlement with several layers ranging from the forest floor to the canopy of the tallest trees. The architecture of the village was amazing considering that these people had used their environment to their advantage. The houses were built among the trees and walkways made of wood and twine linked several houses together and then some. Some of my men openly gawk while others look all around with tense postures as we continue onward toward the largest building.

Villagers who appear to be dress more normally pause in their meanderings and return curious looks. Children stop and gape at our dress and ask their parents who we are. Several are even bold enough to approach within a few paces of my men.

The largest building appears to be in the middle of the village and of great importance I think as we near it. They usher us inside where the room is lit up by several glowing stones; of what origin, I did not know. I had never seen glowing stones such as these before. It takes me a moment to adjust to the blue glow of the stones.

I finally see a man sitting in the middle flanked on either side with other men and a few women. They were not dressed like the soldiers but from the more formal looking their clothes were they would be something akin to a ruling force here in the village.

The man in the middle speaks. His words are foreign to me but as he finishes our guide starts translating. He reiterates his leader's words of greeting and welcome after a long journey. I nod slowly, acknowledging the greeting; I shift from soldier mode to a diplomat. After all, my Emperor wanted something from this village and I would need to be tactful in order to get what I came here for.

_Wufei…_

Their leader speaks again but everything blurs. I try to focus but my vision is hazy.

_Wufei..._ The commanding voice stirs me and I struggle briefly before I sense my body jerk and my eyes open. Trowa is kneeling beside me and he inquires silently with an eye.

I look around a bit wildly, suddenly remembering where I really was. That was strange.

Really strange.

I sat up trying to grasp the fading tendrils of my blurring dream. All I could remember was the need to get something and that haunting voice that kept calling me. I meet Trowa's gaze but I don't say anything. He doesn't ask, instead he stands up.

"Quatre's on his way. He should be here within the day." Trowa leaves the tent; as he opens the flap fire light streams in and I let out a sigh. It's not even dawn yet and I'm already awake. I must have made a commotion for him to wake me up like that. It's not like me to need him to look after me like this.

Even though I can't remember my dream, the after effects have caused havoc with my mind. My thoughts roam and dart around almost frantically. Unanswered questions float around with no way to go; no way to answer them. It frustrates me that I can't seem to solve the mystery of my thoughts. I don't even know what they are half of the time anymore and that's unusual.

I always know my thoughts.

Or at least I used to. What was happening to me?

End of part 3. Well, what do you think? Yeah I know I'm a huge Naruto fan as well. I couldn't help but use a slightly modified Konoha (and I might cross the two anime but there won't be any Sasuke or Naruto here…GW is the main thing). Anyway, like I said before, there's gonna be yaoi. Sorry to disappoint anyone, it is still a long ways away though. I gotta get the plot moving first. Crap, I always think of things I need to explain and then when I actually get to this part I forget what the heck I was going to say. Oh yeah, if these little things are messing with the almighty Wufei already, haha, he might not survive what fate (ahem, me) has in store for him! evil cackle Well, thanks for reading!


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